Ten Things I Hate About You
by AshuraX
Summary: During the group's stay in one of Maki's villa, Nico lists the ten things she hate about her annoyingly intimate fellow third-year, Nozomi.


_**Two stories in a span of less than a month? Am I mad?! Sadly, I'm not writing something about Honoka. I'm writing my actual favourite pair to write about. So forgive me for the lack of Honoka.**_

 _ **Inspired by CalliopeMused's Ten Things I Hate About You, which was probably inspired by the romantic comedy of the same name. I took a lot from CalliopeMused and you should go check them out, more so if you like BBRae. BBRae Is love tho.  
**_

* * *

 **Ten Things I Hate About You**

I know what you're thinking. Why the hell would _I_ of all people watch something that can be considered as one of the chick flicks Eli usually watches in her spare time? To be honest, I hadn't wanted to watch it, but now that Honoka, Rin and I are in the room together, Honoka, for some unknown reason, has that DVD with her. When I asked her how she got it, she just laughed it off. I still wonder what's going on with Honoka and Eli. Anyway, I watched it. There's nothing I particularly like about the movie, excluding that one time the girl was flashing the teacher. Honoka and Rin somehow slept half-way through and I was the only one watching it until the end. Sometimes I feel like I'm the only mature one, when it comes to the three of us. Don't get me wrong, I know what you call our trio. We all just laughed at it because Honoka's an absolute idiot who can't even understand the signs of affection even if someone gave her a crotch to the face. Rin's the idiot who can't tell right from left when the situations are dire – I still blame her for breaking my dad's bike – and I'm the idiot you always tease in eighty percent of our conversation. The other fifteen percent is political discussion and the last five is you just groping me. Yes, I was joking. Groping is not a conversation. No, don't you give me that face.

When Honoka woke up right after the movie, she looked at me strangely. Turns out, I was actually smiling to myself the whole time. To be fair, it _was_ a romantic-comedy of sorts so you can't blame me for smiling. I laughed after that and the two followed. I love them like that. When I laugh, they'll laugh, when I cry, they'll cry, when I get groped by a certain bluenette, they'll do catcalls. Those pricks. And no, I'm not talking about Umi. Don't you put the blame on someone else. Anyway, you should notice by now that I sound different from usual. Well, each of us are different when we write and when we talk. On paper, I can be honest with most things, while I can't even be honest about good food in front of people. Don't believe me? Well, working at the shrine isn't even that bad. I kinda liked how I'm always at peace whenever I'm sweeping the grounds. No, I won't say that to your face. Stop grinning, you cow. I can be as honest as I want, just as long as I don't see your stupid face in front of me. Anyway, the _Ten Things I Hate About You_. If you don't read this until the end, I'm going to read this right in your face in front of the whole world to see. You know _μ's_ is getting bigger and bigger in the media by each passing day. I know if you've read it or not. You can ask your cards if you want. I have my ways.

 **10\. Your Obsession with the Cards**

Okay, let me get this straight. I can understand you like fortune telling, and I can respect that. But you don't _always_ have to rely on your cards. For example, that one time you used the cards to tell us what to do to make the audience love us more. It was not a good plan, and you know it. Though it _was_ kinda funny how Umi said _nya_ every few seconds. Most of the other times turned out for the worse, though. Remember the typhoon incident? It wouldn't have been that way if you just listened to me and stay indoors. None of you ever listen to me. The point is, you can go about your day without relying on the cards. You've done it a few times, I know. And did any of those times turn out for the worse? No. Stop clinging to your cards and actually pay more attention to us as a whole. I know you can do it. Oh, and if you ever say this to _anyone_ , I'm quitting this gig. The only reason I'm still in this group is because I owe Honoka. But if you tell anyone about this letter, I'm out. That's it. You know I'm not joking. You know about my dad. I'll never joke about leaving.

 **9\. Your Teasing**

Sure, it's funny from a third person point of view, but every single time you make someone a target, it becomes infuriating. Bonus points if that someone is me. That one time you teased Maki and I and ordered a couple's parfait for us? Infuriating. I'm not one to care about these things, but Maki's a little touchy about the subject. Not to mention that grin you always wore on your face after a successful tease is _the_ most infuriating. Like, the teasing isn't as bad, compared to your stupid shit-eating grin. The amount of shit that can be consumed in that shit-eating grin of yours is astronomical. If you want to tease someone that much, why don't you just tease Eli? You know you can't do it. Eli's special. She's always been special. The more you tease me, the more you make me despise your very being. You know that, then why would you do it? You've always wanted me to be more familiar with you, yet you tease me to no end. Why?

 **8\. Your Trademark**

You know what I'm talking about. It's the stupid groping you always do to the girls. I know I'm not the only one on the receiving end, but you constantly tend to molest me the most. I've actually did an experiment one time. In one week, you groped Rin, Umi and Kotori two times, Hanayo and Maki three times, and Honoka four times (though to be honest, she does make an easy target so that can be excused). And did you know how much you groped me in that one week? Ten times. Ten _bloody_ times. That's more than twice of Honoka's share. Are you _trying_ to make me mad? I could understand if I actually have _something_ to grope, but I don't. I hypothesized that you were trying to massage me to make it bigger, but Rin, who probably needed it more than me, was only groped twice. Is this some sick joke you're trying to make? If so, then that probably explains how much Eli was groped. I think you know the number without me even telling you, but I'll tell you nonetheless. Eli was groped _zero_ times. It's not as if she puts up a guard around you, either. She's the most at ease when she's with you so she should have been an easier target than even Honoka, but you didn't grope her. Why? Are you telling me you're putting her on some sort of pedestal or something? Isn't that just unfair? Why do you only exclude Eli? Tell me. To hell with Eli, though. I just want you to at least stop the groping. If you think you can make them grow bigger, then you're quite wrong. Kotori mentioned that Honoka and her would sometimes grope Umi when they were younger because of some book they read one time. They thought they could make Umi the bustiest one in their trio when they got older. Turned out she had the smallest. If you're groping me to get some _skinship_ going to further develop our friendship, then you're taking it the wrong way. I like my air bubble. The more you leave me to it, the more I'll be comfortable with you around me. If you just invade my privacy to grope me, then I won't know what to do. I won't know what to think. And that's not something that I'm comfortable with. You know what else I'm uncomfortable with?

 **7\. Your Goddamn Breasts**

It has to be said. Your breasts are annoying. You've always carried yourself with pride for having such huge honkers (for some reason, I'm reminded of Honoka whenever I say that aloud. I wonder why) and at times would hug people, shoving those stupid lumps of fat in people's faces. You'd think that I would be happy if my face is filled with your chest, but to be completely honest I feel like gnawing on them (not in the sexual way. Shut up) and trying to break free of them because they're just _that_ uncomfortable. It felt like hell. You can't breathe in those breasts. Humans need their oxygen. _I_ need my supply of oxygen. Having lumps of fat in your face deprives us of them. Rin probably loves it when you hug her. She's kinda weird. You can hug her all you want, just don't hug me. No, it's not that I don't like your hugging, it's just those damn breasts. Go on a diet, why don't you. I swear the next time you hug me, I'm going to claw my way out of those breasts and seek freedom in Honoka's breasts instead. That idiot won't even get mad. I should know. I've been doing that with Rin sometimes. What? They're more comfortable than yours.

 **6\. That Look In Your Eyes**

When I'm talking about the look, I'm not talking about Honoka's when she has a stupid idea that she wants to try. I'm not talking about Kotori's whenever Honoka gets touchy-feely with anyone. I'm not talking about Eli whenever she felt like crying (though I hate that look as well. The way you just go to her to comfort her whenever that happens makes me hate it even more. She's not a kid). I'm talking about the look you give me whenever we you see me with my family. It's not that shit-eating grin I just loathe. It's… different. I can't explain it no matter how many times I try to think about it. You just… smile. It's not even a bad smile, to be honest. You're just smiling like normal, but it just pains me to look at you when you have that smile. I know it's fake. It's a fake smile, but it also shows that you're happy seeing my family so close. I know you, Nozomi. I know you too well to think that the smile is just you being happy for me. Though your lips curve into a smile, your eyes show me something different. I don't want to see those eyes on you ever. When I talked to Eli about it, she showed me the same smile you had. That same look in her eyes as well. What aren't you telling me, Nozomi? Nevertheless, I won't stop inviting you to my house. I'll make that look in your eyes disappear. I'm going to replace it with a happy one. I'm going to make you show me the smile from the bottom of your heart. That's what I promised myself.

 **5\. How You Always Know**

Whenever I feel sad, you'd always know right away. When I'm bottling myself up, you'd know. When I'm forcing myself, you'd know. When I'm tired, you'd know. You always know. Like that time after Honoka and the gang decided to disband the group. You just knew. That was the first hug that I actually welcomed from the bottom of my heart. That was the first time I let myself go. And you know. I don't even know how you know. We've not known each other as long as the childhood trio, and I've not known you on a personal level as long as Eli. The only times I've ever carried a conversation with you were few in our first and second year. Even then, you knew that I had a hard time with my group. You knew I was sad at that time as well. The only difference was that you chose to let it go, because you knew we weren't as close back then. I sometimes wondered if you joined the group because of Eli, because you wanted to, or just because you wanted to help me. I would most of the time lean to the first option, because let's admit it. It's probably because of Eli. But the other times, I tend to think that you joined simply to help me. Because you're nice like that. Because you always knew. And I'm not okay with it. I'm not okay with you knowing. I want my secrets to remain secrets. You can't just _know_. You're the last person I want to know anything about me. You're the last person I want to worry. You're the last person I wanted to…

 **4\. Your Stupid Timing**

This is related to the last point. I sometimes wonder who's worse between you and Eli, and Eli won simply because she's an idiot. You're not. You have your stupid cards with you. And even if it wasn't for the cards, you have the worst timing. On Christmas, when I felt sad because my dad didn't come home, you were there on my doorstep with that stupid smile on your face. It was the worst timing possible, but you just barged in and introduced yourself to everyone as my best friend. We're not the best of friends at the time, but that made me feel all comfortable inside. When I had a fight with my mom and was just sitting on a swing at a nearby park, you were there passing by. It was night time. You said you were just taking in some fresh air. Your timing couldn't be worse. And you even had the tendency to buy me juice. Your timing… is just bad. Sometimes, I feel thankful for you but most of the time your presence was just unneeded. You just break in whenever I don't want you to. You invade my personal bubble when I'm at my weakest. And I… _really_ hate you for that.

 **3\. Your Smiles**

Yes, it's plural. You have a variety of smiles that are just so hard to decipher. At times, I feel like you're forcing yourself to smile but when you do smile, it's really hard to understand. You have a smile for when you're happy, you have a smile for when you have something evil planned, you have a smile for when you're groping someone, you have a smile for when you're hurt, you have a smile for when you're sad, and you have… _that_ smile. It happens sometimes when I catch you looking at me. You'd always smile that way. It's a smile I don't understand, and when I asked the others about it, they didn't know what I was talking about. They know about your assortment of smiles, but they've never heard of the smile that I was describing to them. Eyes half closed, a side of your lips curled up a bit, your nose scrunching, and that… look in your eyes. What's that look, Nozomi? I've been trying to find out what you were smiling for, but I couldn't decipher it no matter how many times I've thought about it. I even made the courageous thing to tattle you on Eli. But she just looks at me weirdly. She never even saw you smile like that. _Eli_ didn't know a side of you exists. That made me really uncomfortable. What's that smile you've been giving me? What are you trying to tell me? Nozomi?

 **2\. Your _Best Friend_**

You know exactly who I'm talking about. I've been throwing her name in this letter multiple times now, even though this list is supposed to be about the ten things I hate about _you_ , personally. Then why does she get a special mention? You're probably looking skeptical now, and I don't blame you. You always know everything about me, and you know things about everyone else, but you don't even know the one thing that everyone's been saying about you and Eli. Let me get this out for you. You and Eli are special. You have bonds that could make even Kotori blush at how tight it is. And you know Kotori doesn't blush often. Your friendship sometimes make us question whether or not you are simply friends, and that doesn't sit well with me. Whenever I look at the two of you, I feel as though there's something going on between you both and I don't have a place to budge into your relationship. You haven't ever read the school newspaper, have you? If you've read the newspaper, you would know that the number one couple in our campus are you and Eli. That's right, you're officially the best couple in our school. Kinda embarrassing, huh? I'll have to put my two cents as well, huh? I think the two of you would make a great couple. The two of you are perfect for each other, and I think you'd last long together. You know Eli well enough to know that she'd never hurt you, and you love Eli too much to hurt her. I sometimes notice the times when you'd look at each other as if you're talking without even saying a word. I believe that if you confess to Eli, she'd accept. If she confesses to you, then you'd obviously accept as well. I know it won't do you any good coming from me, but Eli is the one for you. You cherish her. You love her. Even so, I'm not a matchmaker, and this isn't some girls talk. This is a list of the ten reasons I avoid you; the reasons that I think you're the most despicable creature to have ever walked this earth (aside from Barney, that dino bastard).

 **1)**

This is the one thing that I shouldn't be saying to you. You know I dislike it when people knew something personal about me. And this, is something personal. I haven't noticed it at first, but after talking to the other three about it after the movie, we came to a consensus. It took a long time and a couple of fights between Honoka and Rin, but I finally came to that realization. And don't you worry about me. Rejection is simple, and lasts only for a while. No matter how you think of me, you know that I won't die from just a rejection. I'm not weak, as Maki would think I am. And don't you dare fake it, because that would hurt me more than any rejection ever could. I know you wouldn't dare hurt me, and a rejection is the better out of the two. And you may think I'm somewhat a retard, for saying this right after the previous point, but that's precisely why I need to tell you this. You've probably caught on already, as I thought you would. If you didn't, then I probably shouldn't be calling Honoka an idiot, because you might as well be as dense as her if you haven't figured it out yet. And yeah, you _can_ be dense at times. Your relationship with Eli, for example. That time you thought a love letter was a letter of challenge, that time you thought the chocolate I gave you had poison, and that time you mistook a junior's confession as a relationship advice. You can be quite dense. Even so, that dense side of yours is all the more reason I feel this way. I feel that way to you, more so than the others.

Rin and Hanayo are like my siblings, as I've always been teaching them life lessons that can be used from time to time. And no, the _Nico Nico Ni_ isn't a life lesson, it's a necessity. Kotori and Umi are my cute juniors who I tend to stay away from, for their love for Honoka knows no bounds. Honoka is my leader, and I've been indebted to her as a samurai would for their lord. You think it sounds funny, but it's true. Honoka's our leader, and we all owe her big time. Eli's like that one friend you hang out with and take care of from time to time. She can be a pain at times, but she's like a little sister to me now. You probably feel the same way, huh? Even more than I do, perhaps. Maki's special. She's been my confidante of sorts, and we've been hanging out quite a lot since we met. She views me as an older sister and I view her as my little sister-who's cuter than Eli, shut up- from time to time. She's the one who feels the same as I do, and I at times confide in her with how I'm feeling, and she confides in me of hers. The both of us never knew what these feelings mean, but I do now. And don't worry, I'll tell her all about it after all this is over. I'm sure Honoka doesn't have anyone on her mind right now. So yes, this isn't simply a process of elimination. If it was, then Maki would have been my best choice. She still was, but this isn't what I'm feeling. Maki is the best choice, but what I'm going to tell you is the right one. It's the only one for me. This is more of a justification to what I'm going to tell you.

I love you, Nozomi. I hate it. I hate the way I love you. I hate the way I realized this only now. I hate how you look so cute when you're talking about your cards, I hate how you make me embarrassed, I hate how I'm the one you groped the most, I hate how you feel warm when you wrap your arms around me, I hate how my family liked you so much, I hate how you know everything about me, I hate how you're always there for me, I hate that smile you always give me when we're alone, I hate how much you love your best friend, and I hate the fact that I'm in love with you. You probably noticed this already, but what I'm talking about probably isn't hate. I don't hate you. I hate the reasons that I can't help but love you. There's a thin line between love and hate. When you're around, I'm forced to choose between two things; annoyance is safe. Love? Love isn't.

 **The One Thing I Hate About Myself**

I won't give this to you. I can practically imagine you calling me a coward for not doing it, but I'm okay with it. I just couldn't sleep after the talk with Honoka and Rin. I'm typing this in the dead of the night while the rest of the group are sound asleep. In doing so, I felt a sense of bravery that I've never felt before when confronted with you. I felt a little happiness inside as I thought about the many things that could happen. And then, it turned for the worse when I thought about how you'd reject me. You'd scoff at this and then roped up the whole group to laugh at my face. You'd probably be laughing with Eli the most because that's how you'd do things. And then, I'd sink into depression. I'd quit the group and would live a live as a farmer or something. My uncle's a farmer, so he'd probably be willing to show me the ropes. Or he'd _really_ show me the ropes. My other uncle's a fisherman. Therefore, I won't be giving this to you. I'll just print this out and admire this for a couple of seconds, only to throw this in the trash bin outside. You'll never find this, and we'll never have to talk about this. That's how it should be.

But I _do_ think of happier things. I think about what if's. What if I actually do give you this? You'd look at the topic and you'd smile, knowing it was definitely from me. I'd hear a knock at my door and I'd answer it and opened the door. In front of my door, I find a box of chocolates. A heart-shaped box. I know it sounds girly of me, but that would really make my heart skip. I pick up the box of chocolates and smile. You'd come out of hiding and then smile that knowing smile of yours. I wish that was what would happen. I know it within me that reality isn't so friendly. Even so, I'd think of ways to give this list to you. I could slide in under your door. I could paste it in your room, above the picture of the nine of us. I could slip it in your pocket after we pass each other during a live. I could even use that cannon Honoka built and put the letter in a ball. I could do many things, but I know that I won't do it. One can dream, can't she?

Everyone would probably laugh at this. How can someone as cute and beautiful as _the_ Nico Nico Ni fall in love with a creepy perverted molester who can't stand not groping someone for five minutes? I mean, it's completely mental. I can't help it. When someone's so kind to me, who's there when I needed it most, who knows me so well, how can I _not_ fall in love with them? You gave me everything I ever needed and more.

I'll keep this to myself. I'll hit you whenever you grope people, but that's the best I can do. One day when you're married, you'd ask me to braid your hair, for old time's sake. I'd decline for the first few times, but you'd manage to convince me by the end, just like always. When I'm braiding your hair, you'd make me laugh like old times and I'd smile. Whenever I make you smile, that's enough for me. You'd ask me if I'm ever going to settle down soon. I'll just smile and say that perhaps one day, but not soon enough. As I watch you walk down the isle, you caught sight of me and then smiled to me. I'd smile as well, but only for a moment. You stand next to Eli as the two of you chuckle, not believing that today's the day. When all is done, she'd kiss you. You'd kiss her back. She loves you and you love her, that's the truth. I'd watch the two of you with a smile on my face as I bury everything inside. It's not my right to ruin something beautiful and I'll accept it. Because that's how it should be. And I'd be happy for you.

Love is difficult. You want to be with the person you love the most, but if they'd be happier with someone else, then you'd let them go. Jealousy is ugly, but it's okay to feel a little jealous, right? I'll feel jealous, but I'm fine as long as you're happy. I'll bury all my feelings deep within me.

* * *

Nico smiled as she looked at the black and white in front of her. The list was printed marvelously and she felt proud that she managed to complete the whole thing. She poured her heart and soul into it and without even realizing it, managed to completely capture her feelings in paper. Her mind wandered off into the far distance as she imagined Nozomi's smile if she read it. She shook her head, warding off those thoughts.

"Don't confuse sympathy for affection." she silently advised herself.

She got up from the laptop and looked around the room. Rin was hugging Honoka by her side, her hands on her chest while Honoka was drooling, presumably dreaming about bread. Nico chuckled to herself and tiptoed around the room, making sure to not make as much noise as possible. She reached the door after a few seconds and opened it. Looking left to right, she proceeded cautiously towards the living area of the villa they were staying at. The others were probably asleep by now, but you can never be too careful.

She reached the garbage bin in the living room in a few seconds and released a sigh of relief. She dumped the papers into the bin and was going to turn around, until-

" _Nicocchi?"_

Her heart skipped a beat as she realized who was behind her and what kind of tone she was using. That playful voice could only mean-

" _Nicocchi!"_

"Ya!"

Nico released a startled shout as she felt two hands on her chest. Nozomi was groping her, again, and Nico whirled around to hit her. Luckily, Nozomi avoided just in time by taking a step back. Nico hit air and fumed.

"Don't surprise me like that." Nico warned.

"Now what would our Nicocchi be doing that you'd be _that_ surprised by my presence?" Nozomi leaned in, a sly grin on her face.

Nico's cheeks turned a bit red both by her secret and the fact that Nozomi was inches away from her. She instinctively stepped back, afraid of revealing her feelings on her sleeve.

"That's for me to know, and for you to never find out." _That's why you're not able to step forward. Stop being so cold to her, geez._ Nico coughed. "So, what are you doing? Can't sleep?"

Nozomi giggled, as if that question itself was funny. Was it that funny?

"Something like that." Nozomi said, "I've been thinking about a few things."

Nico raised an eyebrow at that.

"And what would that be?"

Already expecting the question, Nozomi grinned.

"What do _you_ think, Nicocchi?"

At that, Nico blushed even redder. She scowled and passed her towards their assigned rooms.

"Keep your delusions for yourself, idiot!" shouted Nico from afar.

Nozomi giggled.

"She's such a shy maiden."

Nozomi walked towards the nearby refrigerator but stopped in her tracks at the garbage bin. She looked at it as though her cards are telling her something. She could see a few pages of paper sticking out a bit from it as though it's been put there carefully. She could see the bold letters which she thought was the title. Nozomi was intrigued. She blinked and looked at the direction of her cards in her skirt pocket. She felt the need to pull out her cards, but stopped herself. Something told her that she shouldn't.

"Am I being attracted to trash, now?" she chuckled at herself.

If she consulted her cards, they would've told her to do the opposite of what she was about to do. If she just felt the slight need to actually drink, then things would not have turned out that way.

But fate works in mysterious ways.

She picked the stacks of paper up and read it. When she saw the title clearly, she read it aloud.

" _Ten Things I Hate About You_ , huh?"

She felt a pang in her heart, as she knew for fact that it was written by Nico, as Nico was the last one here.

If she only gave up then, then things wouldn't turn out that way.

She steeled herself and read it.

* * *

In a twenty-four hour convenience store, the cashier was enjoying his peace and quiet. He took a sip of tea as he did what any late night worker would do; check pictures of cats in his smartphone. Little did he know, the sliding doors opened. He took that as a sign that he should stop browsing cats in his phone and greet his costumer, only to realize that the costumer was sweating from head to toe.

"W- Welcome?"

He still greeted the costumer, but it seemed as though she hadn't heard it. She came into the store and looked around for a bit with bloodshot eyes. She then looked at the cashier, which seemed almost like a glare to the man. He flinched, readying himself for any sort of attack she would do. Does she have a gun?

"Excuse me."

"Y- Yes?!"

To say the worker was terrified would be an understatement. A sweaty girl came into the store late at night at like, 3 a.m and was glaring daggers at him. If this were a horror flick, he would have died with a machete to the head. He silently prayed that he were to be killed with at least a handgun.

"Do you have a heart-shaped chocolate?"

"What?"

That took him completely by surprise. What was the chocolate for? To symbolize her stabbing his heart with a knife? He raised an eyebrow at first, but then reluctantly replied the girl's question.

"No, it's already sold out and the next shipment comes at 9 in the morning." he answered the question truthfully.

The girl seemed to be lost in thought, but only for a moment.

"Too long..." she said as she turned around. The man could barely hear her say, "I can't wait any longer."

She walked towards the door, puzzling the man even more. Did she not come here to take his life and cause a massacre of convenience store chains? Where is her machete? And why does she look so familiar?

"Aren't you that school idol?" the man asked.

The girl turned around a bit, facing the man.

She smiled.

"I'm just a girl in love."

* * *

Nico couldn't sleep. She felt as though something was going on without her knowing. She got up and carefully threaded the landmines of Honoka and Rin as she made her way towards the door. Before she even opened it, there was a quiet knock of the door. This puzzled Nico greatly. She opened the door, only to be met with something she never thought was possible.

Nozomi was sweating from her head to her toes, her hair disheveled and clothes slightly ajar. She was breathing heavily, perhaps having ran a few meters. If that wasn't enough, she could see what Nozomi was holding. It was a chocolate bar, a simple kind she could buy for a couple of yen. She then looked at Nozomi again, surprised.

Her breathing was still unsteady, but she willed herself to speak.

"I- There wasn't- weren't any- heart-shaped ones- so this was-"

Nozomi berated herself for that. She was usually someone with a good head on her shoulders, someone who was able to carefully plan her next moves against her opponents. She was usually the most level-headed of the group. However after reading the letter, she immediately dropped everything and ran towards the nearest convenience store with only Nico in her mind. She dropped by five convenience stores but her search bore no fruit. She decided at the fifth one to just buy a chocolate bar, and hope that Nico would forgive her. She didn't want to keep her waiting. Therefore, she didn't plan any of this. She was only doing things by heart. She didn't even look at her cards during the whole goose chase.

She took a deep breath and exhaled a few times and then looked at Nico directly.

'I'm sorry I couldn't find any, Nicocchi." she asked the girl for forgiveness and continued, "I searched everywhere and they were all sold out. Usually my luck wasn't this bad, but that search was horrible. But perhaps I can make up for this and buy you one tomo-"

She wasn't able to continue, as Nico launched herself at her.

Nico hugged her tightly, tears flowing from her eyes. She felt a million things, but the most notable thing she felt was relief- relieved that Nozomi was there with her, relieved that she went through such lengths for her, relieved for everything.

She let herself go and hugged the girl all through the night, as Nozomi hugged her back, a smile she never showed anyone but Nico.

A smile with tears in her eyes.

* * *

As Eli came out of her shared bedroom, she noticed six figures were standing at the living room entrance. As she walked closer, she came to realize what was it that caused her fellow idol group members to become speechless.

On the living room sofa sat Nozomi, hugging the black-haired third year who was sitting on her lap as they looked in front. Well, Nico looked in front. Nozomi was still looking at her adorable little super idol.

Nozomi realized that eyes were on her and she looked behind her to see that the other girls were already awake and looking at the scene in front of them. _Nico_ was _letting Nozomi_ , of all people, hug her like that. That was not something one sees everyday, and Nozomi hoped they'd see it in more days to come.

Nozomi winked at the crew and shushed them.

While the others were still trying to comprehend what was going on with the two, Eli spoke up, a smile on her face.

"Took you two long enough." she said, congratulating the two in a round-about way.

Nozomi smiled as well, and hers were truly beautiful.

"It was worth it."

And it really was.

Nico heard it all, but only looked forward. Her cheeks were flushed red and her heart was beating fast, but none of that mattered at the moment. She was smiling, almost mimicking Nozomi's. She knew the others were going to ask questions and her reputation might even drop at this rate, but she didn't care. She was in the arms of the girl she hated the most, and the one she loves the most.

And that's all that mattered.

 **[END]**

* * *

" _ **Am I being attracted to trash, now?"**_

 _ **Well, you're attracted to Nico. BOOM!**_

 _ **I love NozoNico. I find their interactions to be more heartfelt than any other pairings that I tend to ship or not ship. During the chocolate search scene, Nozomi was trying that hard and being… un-Nozomi-like. Even after that. I wanted to show just how much she's trying to do for Nico. I wanted her to do everything with her full power, without relying on the cards, which was probably how she came to be so knowledgeable and all powerful and all that. That should be out-of-character for her, but know that people will do anything for the ones they love. And Nozomi would search convenience stores and give up for Nico… Wait. Anyway, I hope I'm forgiven for the lack of Honoka. Oh, did you see the new episode of Sunshine? I'm more focused on how You looked like she was hurt that Chika was looking at Riko and was hiding something from her. ChikaYou's my OTP for that. I hope someone would write Yandere You…. Youdere.**_

 _ **And to that, I bid you adieu.**_


End file.
